Bella Swan: Shape-Shifter
by TonightAtSeven
Summary: Starts from the beginning of twilight. Bella notices something strange going on since she moved to Forks, but what happens isn't what she thought. Will secrets be discovered?


**** I redid this story a little bit, I didn't like the way it was going so I started back from the beginning. It's part of the reason why I never updated this again. I'll delete the first draft of this shortly, but I didn't just post the same chapter, I redid it to fit the way I want the story to end up. **

My mother drove me to the airport, the windows rolled down and the 75 degree air mixing in the car. I was wearing a white sleeveless shirt and a pair of light blue shorts. I had a small jacket in my bag for when I got off the plane, some books and my small iPod.

I was moving to Forks; a small town in the north part of Washington state. I haven't been there in years, not since I was 13 to be exact. It was the town where my dad (Charlie) lived, I used to spend summers with him, but I haven't in years.

I loved Phoenix. I loved the sun and the blistering heat. I loved the vigorous, sprawling city. But Forks is where I needed to be, it was where everyone needed me.

"Have a safe flight, call me when you can. And tell your dad I said hi." Renée -a free-spirited young gal who (essentially) threw me to the wolves was now telling me goodbye- said handing me my bag. She didn't want me to ruin her prefect relationship with my 'rebellious teenage youth'. She just got married to a guy almost half her age and she didn't want me around so they could be alone. Gross. She told Charlie that I wanted to come down, that it was my idea to move schools mid-year and start over.

Looking back on it; it was the best thing I've ever done.

"Thanks mom, I will." She kissed me on the cheek and I walked to the airport, ready as I'll ever be for the four-hour flight from Phoenix to Seattle, another hour in a small plane up to Port Angeles, and then an hour drive back down to Forks. I loved flying, but I was worried about the drive with Charlie. I stopped worrying and put on some music and started reading, no point in stressing out when nothing could be done.

After the awkward car ride and the unpacking were done, I had a few hours to kill before I needed to start heading to bed. "Dad, can I go drive around to the beach or something? I want to try out the car before I go to school tomorrow." I had picked up the keys as I spoke.

"Sure Bells, but you don't have to ask every time. Just tell me when you're heading out." He smiled up at me and went back to his game he was watching.

I thanked him and headed out. The truck started up easy but was very loud, roaring to life at top volume. I don't think the thing when over 45 mph the whole time as I drove to La Push- a tiny Indian reservation a few miles from Forks. After a 25 minute drive I ended up at first beach.

The beach was empty. It seemed no one wanted to enjoy this wonderful day of rain at the beach. I shrugged and pulled out my iPod and head phones, putting them on I sat down on a large piece of drift wood and watched the waves and eventually the sun set. I looked at the beautiful shades of red, orange, and blue and I realized that maybe it wouldn't be so bad here. That as long as I could come here to sit and think and watch the beauty of the innocence like this moment, everything would be fine. I made up my mind; at least once a week I'd come down here to think and watch the sunset.

After a while I got up and walked to my rusted old red truck, taking another 25 minutes to get back to my new house next to the forest. When I got in I noticed Charlie was asleep in his arm chair with the end credits of a movie on. I laughed slightly and turned off the TV, I wasn't sure if I should wake him or not; so I got him out a blanket before heading upstairs.

After taking a lukewarm shower I got into bed, putting on sweats and a long sleeve before I went. The room was dark; the only light coming from the moon shining through my window, but that was only a dull yellow color that didn't reach half way to my bed. As the night went on I found it harder and harder to sleep; but with every second I grew more tired than before. The drizzling of the rain wasn't something I was used to, but something even more seemed off. I rolled my eyes at myself, nothing is out there; nothing is going to do anything to me.

I checked my electric alarm clock on the side of my bed; _5:43 Tuesday January 18__th_. It had seemed I wouldn't sleep tonight. I sighed and got up; my back was relived with the sudden lack of weight on it. I slowly got ready for school. Putting paper and pens in my seemly weightless navy blue backpack, only putting paper in so wouldn't be _totally_ unprepared. Then I pulled out my outfit; a plain gray long sleeved shirt, a red flannel and dark blue jeans. I chuckled as I thought about how different I must look from yesterday. I let my long brown hair stay wavy and just put a beanie on it. Satisfied with how I look I went down stairs to get something to eat. Looking around I noticed how little food Charlie had here.

_I'll have to go shopping soon- real soon. _

School didn't start for another hour so I grabbed a jacket and went off to find the nearest drug store to pick up a few things. I quickly found a 7/11 and got a monster and a banana before driving the other way to school. Forks High; a school with 127 -now 128- students attending. I found the front office building and parked in front of that. Stopping my car quickly in hopes to draw less attention to myself I hopped out; the chilly air nipped at the skin that wasn't coved. When I walked in I noticed the three chairs behind the counter, one of which held up a large, red-haired woman wearing glasses. She had a light yellow t-shirt, which immediately made me feel over-dressed. The red-haired woman looked up. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Isabella Swan," I informed her, and saw the immediate awareness light her eyes as it suddenly hit me, I would be top gossip in this small town. '_The famous Chief Swan's daughter comes home after his evil ex-wife took her as a baby.' _Great, just what I wanted.

"Of course," her voice was bright and cheery. She dug through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk till she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedule right here, and here's a map of the school." And continued to circle my classes and marked the fastest ways to get there. By the time she was done the first bell rang for me to leave. "I hoped you like it here Miss. Swan." She smiled up at me, her blue eyes shining and a hint of a dimple stuck out.

I smiled politely back and went to search for my first class, 11th grade AP English with Mr. Mason; which was across campus. Once I got around the cafeteria, the building was easy to spot. A large black "3" was painted on a white square on the east corner. I felt my breathing gradually creeping toward hyperventilation as I approached the door as I followed other students in. Inside the small classroom I handed the teacher the slip for him to sign, then headed in the back in hopes no one would stare.

But of course, they did.

When the bell rang, a gangly boy with skin problems and black hair leaned across the aisle to talk to me. "You're Isabella Swan, aren't you?" He looked like the overly helpful, chess club type.

"Bella," I corrected. Everyone within a three-seat radius turned to look at me.

"Where's your next class?" he asked.

I had to check in my bag. "AP Government with Jefferson, in building six."

_There was nowhere to look without meeting curious eyes._

"I'm headed toward building four; I could show you the way…" he was definitely over-helpful. "I'm Eric," he added as he put out his hand for a hand shake.

I smiled tentatively and shook his hand. "Thanks."

As the day went on more and more people came up to me, mostly either horny guys that were wanting some of the "new meat" or jealous girls looking for a reason to hate me. Everyone stared as I opened the doors to the cafeteria; the feeling of being watched didn't stop as I got my food. It was like I was an animal in a cage; everyone was looking in at the new addition. The guy from English- Eric I think his name was- waved me down to sit with him and his friends.

"Bella, this is Mike," pointing to a dark haired boy "Angela," a frizzy haired girl that I recognized from my Spanish class "Jessica and Lauran." Two girls that could pass as sisters (even with non- matching hair colors) waved back. "Tyler should be here soon, I haven't seen him today so he might not be here." He tried to explain, thought I had no idea who he was.

"Bella is it? I think I have you in my 2nd period." Jessica's snarky voice brought my attention to her.

"Uhh maybe? Sorry, I don't know, I didn't notice."

It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with five strangers, that I first saw them. They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room.

There were five of them. They weren't talking, and they weren't eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. They weren't watching at me, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, my attention.

_They looked like human sized crystals._

The shortest one was the first to look up, I could see the honey gold even from across the room. She didn't look directly at me, but even her eyes directed in my area made the hair on my neck stand up. I felt like she was talking to the others, though I couldn't see or hear anything. They all seemed too perfect, too pale even in this sunless town to be human. "Who are they?" I spoke up; interrupting the conversation I wasn't paying attention to. As though my voice was law they all looked up to see what I was looking at.

"That's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife." Lauran answered, knowing who I was talking about.

"They are… nice looking?"

"Oh my yes!" Jessica agreed with giggle. "They're all together though- Emmett and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together with Dr. and Mrs. Cullen." Her voice held all the shock and condemnation of the small town. But, if I was being honest, I had to admit that even in Phoenix, it would cause gossip.

"They're not related though." Mike piped in. "They are like adopted or something."

"I don't think Mrs. Cullen can have kids." Jessica commented, as though it was the only reason for their kindness. Throughout all this conversation, my eyes flickered again and again to the table where the strange family sat. They continued to look at the walls and not eat.

As I walked down the aisle to introduce myself to the teacher and get my slip signed, I was watching one of the Cullens as he fiddled with his pencil. Just as I passed, he suddenly went rigid in his seat. He stared at me again, meeting my eyes with the strangest expression on his face — it was hostile, furious. I looked away quickly, shocked, going red again.

_His eyes were black — coal black._

The seat beside his was the only one open, forcing me to sit next to him. His eyes were fixed on the board; but it wasn't like he was really seeing anything. I noticed he wasn't breathing and his hands were turning white from holding on to the chair too tight. As the class went on he didn't move, though he was sitting as far away from me as he could. He looked like he had smelt something bad, though I only smelt the strawberry from my shampoo last night. I peeked up at him one more time, and regretted it. He was glaring down at me again, his black eyes full of revulsion.

At that minute, the bell rang deafeningly, making me jump, and Edward was out of his seat. Gracefully he rose; his back to me, and he was out the door before anyone else was out of their seat. I sat still frozen in my seat, staring expressionlessly after him. He was so cruel. It wasn't fair. I began gathering up my things slowly, trying to block the anger that filled me, for fear my eyes would tear up.

As I got up, the kid Mike from lunch walked up to me, ready to walk to gym. Like expected it didn't end well, with me hitting Mike in the face more than once.

The final bell rang at last. I walked to the office to return my paperwork. The wind was strong, and colder than before making me rap my arms around myself. When I walked into the warm office, I almost turned around and walked back out.

The same Cullen stood at the desk in front of me. I recognized that wind-swept bronze hair. He didn't appear to notice my entrance. I stood pressed against the back wall, waiting for the receptionist to be free. He was arguing with her in a low, attractive voice. I quickly picked up the idea of the argument. He was trying to trade from 5th period Biology to another time — any other time.

"I'm sorry Edward, but the time to change your classes has passed. And even if not, 5th is the only period that he teaches Advanced Biology. There's nothing I can do."

"Never mind, then," he said, his voice like velvet. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." And he turned on his heel without a look at me, and disappeared out the door.

I don't remember much after that, I don't even remember getting home that night. But one thing was clear in my mind; Edward Cullen hated me and I didn't know why.

For almost a week he wasn't there. The next Monday he returned, but it was much the same as before; him glaring at me without breathing. It made me wonder if he was always like this, so rude and hostile. Maybe that's why Jessica didn't seem to like them, was he like this with her too? _Not that she needed all the attention on her always; I think she got enough from everyone else in the school._ But still, was it necessary?

By Tuesday he saved my life from Tyler's van almost running into me. It happened so fast, but I can still remember every detail, every sound, and every look he and his family gave me for weeks after that. I'm not sure when it started but I noticed I stopped tripping all the time, my hearing was getting better, and started smelling a sticky sweet smell throughout the school. My eye sight had improved so much in fact that I hadn't worn my contacts in almost a week.

It was now March 3rd and Edward asked me if I wanted to sit with him and his family for lunch the day before in Biology. So I was now walking over- ignoring the looks and calls for me for my group of "friends". I sat with my back away from everyone, facing the window. I could hear the gossip whispers of Jessica, wondering why I was sitting with _them_.

I saw the blonde one- Rosalie- scrunch up her nose and whisper something to Emmett. He boomed with laugher and agreed with her, making everyone look over at us. For some reason I started shaking, not in the "I'm cold" kind of way; but in the "ill beat your ass if you do this shit again".

Alice touched my arm; her hands were as cold as ice. "Bella! You're burning up! Are you sick?"

"No, I feel fine." I was confused, I was sure it was her that was too cold.

Edward put his hand on my forehead; his too was as cold as ice. "Love, you are getting a little warm. Maybe you should take off one of your jackets-"

"Eddy is telling you he wants to get you undressed" Emmett laughed, making Rosalie hit him in the back of the head. My cheeked turned crimson.

"Don't embarrass the poor girl. I'm so sorry about him." She apologized to me, but never looked my way.

After a few more minutes of talking I asked if they wanted to go to First Beach with a few kids here, they all declined saying they had things to do for this Saturday.

I awoke by an unusual light filling my room, I looked out my window and sure enough it was sun! The bright yellow sun seemed out of place in the rainy town of Forks. But I wouldn't complain so I put on some long shorts and a tank top and headed out.

As I got there I noticed a few other guys around the fire they must have set up for us. There were 3 of them with Russet skin, but only 1 of them had long hair. The other two Quileute boys all looked the same, with dark hair and a strong build. Each of them looked over 20 and was over 6 feet tall. _They must be twins_. As I got closer I recognized one as Jacob Black, one of my friends when I was little. "Jake? Is that you?"

"Bella?" he jumped up and hugged me. "Bells? Are you okay?"

I looked at him confused. "What? Why wouldn't I be?"

"Bella you're like 100 degrees right now!"

This is when one of the other guys with Russet skin came over. "Let me see..." he put his big hand on my forehead. But the sudden touch of this stranger made me start shaking. I threw his hand off me and walked away from them, sitting down next to Angela. I felt eyes all on me as I tried to start a conversation with her; but the more I tried to ignore them the more I started to shake.

"Bella?"

I looked up and saw that it was the other boy.

"What do you want?"

"Come walk with me, I'm Jared by the way." I looked at him for a long time, but finally got up to get away from everyone. I could still feel myself shaking; but it wasn't as bad as before. As we walked we didn't say anything, all the voice we had seemed to have been left by the fire. I noticed how tall he was, the tattoo on his arm and that he only had low hanging cut off shorts on. I had to stop myself from drooling over his body.

Jared and I ended up sitting in the sand, I knew the sand should be warm from being in the sun; but for some reason it felt normal, maybe even cold. We didn't talk until the other boy came up into view. "Who's friend?"

"Paul." He looked angry, very angry.

"Is something wrong?"

Before Jared could answer Paul got into hearing distance. "How long have you been this tempter?"

Startled by his sudden question I answered without thinking. "I don't know, two weeks maybe?"

"Have you noticed any changes with you eye sight? Hearing maybe? Sense of smell? Have you gotten taller?"

"Slowly yeah, since I moved here. Why? What does this have anything to do with anything?"

"No… this can't be. She's a pale face, and a girl! Fuck Sam is going to flip." Paul whispered to himself.

I started shaking, how dare he use that as a reason against me. I didn't know what they were talking about, but whatever it was it shouldn't matter if I was white or female. "What the fuck man! I don't even fucking know you and you're talking shit. What the fuck is wrong with you! You racist sexist piece of shit." I didn't even know why I was so mad, but something inside me just snapped and I couldn't control it.

"Get her into the woods" Jared screamed at Paul, but before I could think on it I was being dragged into the tee line by the two. When they let me go I noticed I was shaking uncontrollably, it felt like my bones were moving and breaking. I screamed out in pain before everything went black.

When I opened my eyes all the pain was gone. I noticed everyone else had left somewhere. '_Guys_?'

"_Holy shit_!" Paul's voice rang in my head. I looked around for him, but I still couldn't see him.

"_What the fuck is happening_?" no one answered me. "_I asked you a question; fucking answer me_."

"_Bella do you know anything about the Quileute tribal legions_?" Jared's voice was suddenly there, I noticed how deep and husky his voice was.

Paul and Jared started laughing, "_What_?"

"_B, we can hear what you're thinking_." Paul started laughing again.

"_What? How_?" but he didn't answer me, instead Jared asked his question again, more annoyed this time. "_No, why would I know anything like that? I thought you couldn't talk about them to anyone outside of the tribe?"_

"_Look at your feet_." When I looked down I saw a pair of dark gray paws where my hands should be. _What the fuck_. I started freaking out, my mind racing faster than I could process. "_Woah calm down now, let us tell you everything so you understand_." And so they did, each of them explaining some part of being a wolf.

Paul talked about what triggers made us change and why we change; to protect the tribe from vampires- fucking _vampires!_

Jared's thing was that we couldn't tell anyone, not even my father.

They both talked about our 'powers', like our enhanced hearing, sight, sense of smell, hearing each other's thoughts in wolf form and our super strength and speed. They said that no other female has phased ever; and that I'm the only person not blood related to anyone in tribe.

"We should take her to Sam's"

Jared groaned, "Do we have to? I mean don't you think it'd be too much?"

"Who's Sam?"

"Our Alpha, he's not the warmest person to be around." Paul and Jared's memories of Sam floated in my head, he stood tall with his shoulders back. His hair was braided back, and long, very long. He face gave away no emotion, but his features were older, stronger than the others. His words were spoken sharply and to the point, no fluff, no bullshit, just speaking what needs to be said and nothing else. He helped the pack but didn't try to get to know them, his orders were set in stone but Paul and Jared were alone with what to do most of the time.

"So what, Jared? It's _his_ pack, _he_ needs to teach her. We can do the basics but we need our alpha."

"Fine, but if she cries it's on you."

Sam's house was… different.

It sat on the edge of the town, hidden from the main rode behind a wall of trees. The two storied house was very large, larger than any house I've seen since I came here.

Sam must have heard us coming because he stood outside waiting for us. "Paul, phase back." An order. Paul was naked when we phased back but that didn't bother him. "Who is this? Why didn't you call for me as soon as you noticed the change begin?" another order. _I wonder if he ever asks and doesn't order._

"It's… Bella Swan, you know chief Swan's daughter." Sam nodded. "As for your other question… I don't know. She was about to phase when we found her. We're lucky she didn't phase in front of anyone."

"Bella, phase back." My bones cracked again and suddenly I was human again. I looked up in amazement, I was naked, but I couldn't find it in myself to care.

"Wh- what is this? What's happening to me?"

"It's a great honor to be a protector of the tribe."

"Yes I know but I'm not part-"

"Of the tribe, I understand; but as a protector you are. I'll be sure to put you in the books. Once you're ready to go back to school you'll go to the school on the reservation. You'll start patrols tomorrow at 2, don't be late."

That was it. That was all he said before walking back into his house. I was left alone with Jared and Paul 20 feet from Sam's front door.

"See Jared, nothing bad happened."

Jared phased back. "Not yet."

"What do I do now?"

"Go back home, eat something, and then come back here at two for patrols. Everything will be fine. Come on, let's get you come clothes and get you home." With one last glance at Sam's house, I followed Jared back to my house.

I had never been happier for my back door to open up to the forest.

It was still early, 2 in the afternoon maybe. The boys grabbed some shorts on the way back but that didn't help me. I ran up to my room to find something to wear. I found that even my longest pants didn't pass my ankle. I settled with what now are capris and a long shirt.

I was dying in the heat.

But I also didn't want to appear abnormal. I shouldn't be used to the cold enough to wear shorts and a tank top. I was from Arizona, not Alaska. This wasn't normal.

But I guess turning into a giant dog is.

I brushed out my long hair; I had a feeling I'd have to cut it short. I wonder if Sam will make me or if it'll be something I want out of comfort. Sam didn't cut his hair, but the two other boys did. "Jared!" I yelled down stairs.

"Yeah?"

"Do I have to cut my hair?" I walked in to the kitchen. Paul was cooking… something and Jared was sitting at the table.

"You don't _have _to. But it's more comfortable this way. The hair length on the wolf is in relation to your hair length. After tonight you should know if you want to or not. Sam didn't obviously, but he's also the chief, it's looked down upon to cut ones hair if you're high up in the tribe."

"But you guys are protectors? Isn't that high up in the tribe?"

"It's not the same. The tribe thinks very little of us. They think we're Sam's charity case. Of course the council knows about us, but no matter what they say it won't change people's views on us. My mom even thinks I'm doing drugs or something. If only she knew, if only they all knew."

"I'm sorry…"

"It's alright. You need to eat something. Paul looks to be about done."


End file.
